Hope through the Hard

leviaherrin
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This is Hope Through the Hard — where we talk honestly about life’s struggles and how to face them in healthy, hope-filled ways. Because as 2 Corinthians says, we may be hard pressed… but we are never crushed.

  1. 1d ago

    When Life Feels Too Full to Be Intentional

    Living Whole in a Fragmented World What happens when the things making your life feel overwhelming aren't things you can—or even should—remove? “Just simplify your life” can be helpful advice. Sometimes we've taken on responsibilities that were never ours, filled our schedules unnecessarily, or continued saying yes because we're afraid to disappoint someone. But sometimes life is simply full. Children need us. Work requires us. People we love get sick. Marriage takes attention. Ministry takes time. Bodies have needs. Dinner still has to be made. Someone needs a ride. The laundry is buzzing—and somehow everybody is looking for you at once. In this episode of Hope Through the Hard, Ashley and Levi ask a different question: Can we live full lives without living fragmented lives? Beginning with Jesus' words in Mark 1 and the disciples' declaration that “everyone is looking for you,” they explore the difference between a life that is genuinely full and a life in which our attention has become scattered across everything demanding it. Ashley introduces Sophie Leroy's research on attention residue—the lingering attention that can remain with one task after we've moved to another—and asks a deeper discipleship question: Psychology can tell us that our attention is limited. Discipleship asks what we will give that attention to. Together, Ashley and Levi explore Charles Hummel's idea of “the tyranny of the urgent,” Jesus' response to legitimate demands on His attention, why a faithful no can protect an important yes, and the freedom of accepting that human beings were never created to be limitless. Because: The loudest thing in your life is not necessarily the most important thing in your life. And intentionality isn't about creating a perfectly ordered, slow, aesthetically peaceful life. Intentionality is not creating the perfect rhythm for your life. It's learning to recognize what love and faithfulness require in the life you're actually living. Through ordinary examples—from unanswered emails and unfinished laundry to children who need our attention at 4:47 p.m.—this conversation brings the healing practice of Notice → Bring → Discern → Respond into everyday discipleship. You don't have to figure out the whole picture today. Come back to Jesus. What deserves your yes? What requires your no? What deserves your presence? What can wait? What is the next faithful thing? Do that with Him. Because healing isn't something we visit anymore. It's becoming the way we live. Scripture referenced: Mark 1:35–39; Matthew 12:46–50; 2 Corinthians 4:8–9 Research referenced: Sophie Leroy (2009), “Why Is It So Hard to Do My Work? The Challenge of Attention Residue When Switching Between Work Tasks,” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 109(2), 168–181. Charles E. Hummel, Tyranny of the Urgent. Visit Curated Coalition for coaching services and to book a free consultation: curatedcoalition.com

  2. Sep 2

    Your Body Is a Place of Worship

    Offering Your Whole Self to ChristWhat if your body is not a problem to solve, an inconvenience to ignore, or something divine to worship—but part of the life God has given you to offer back to Him?In this episode of Hope Through the Hard, Ashley and Levi explore what it means to reclaim the body as a place of worship. We often divide our spiritual lives from our physical ones, but Scripture gives us a much more integrated picture of humanity. Jesus Himself took on flesh, experienced hunger, fatigue, pain, touch, grief, and rest—and Christian hope ultimately points toward resurrection, not escape from embodiment.Together, they unpack the difference between Christian embodiment and contemporary spirituality that tells us to discover the divine within ourselves. Revelation 4 gives us a very different picture: God is on the throne, He created all things, and we are deeply loved creatures who belong to Him. We do not look inward and discover that we are God; we look upward and remember that we belong to God.Ashley and Levi also introduce the concept of interoception—our awareness of internal bodily signals like heartbeat, breathing, hunger, tension, temperature, and fatigue—and consider how body awareness can become part of ordinary discipleship. The goal is not to obey every thought, feeling, desire, or physical sensation, but to notice what is happening and bring it under the loving lordship of Christ.They offer a simple practice:Notice. Bring. Discern. Respond.What am I experiencing? Can I bring it to Jesus without shame? What might this be communicating? What does faithfulness look like in this body, in this moment?The conversation moves into the ordinary places where embodied worship actually happens: exhaustion, anxiety, food, movement, aging, physical limitations, body image, caregiving, work, rest, and the simple routines of everyday life. Rather than forcing body positivity or waiting for a healthier, younger, stronger, thinner, or more capable version of ourselves, we can begin with the bodies we actually have today.Romans 12 gives the invitation: present your bodies as a living sacrifice.Not an imaginary future body.Not a perfected body.This one.Because:Your body doesn’t have to be perfected before it can become a place of worship.And perhaps one of the most ordinary ways we begin living from wholeness is simply opening our hands before the God who created us and saying:“Jesus, here I am.”Scripture referenced: John 1:14 Revelation 4 2 Corinthians 10:5 Romans 12:1–2 2 Corinthians 4:8–9Visit curatedcoalition.com to learn more about Curated Coalition coaching or to book a free consultation.

  3. Aug 26

    Healing Happens in Ordinary Moments

    Healing Happens in Ordinary MomentsFinding Christ and the Fruit of Healing in Everyday LifeWhat if some of the clearest evidence that you're healing isn't found in a dramatic breakthrough—but in an ordinary Tuesday when you simply respond differently than you used to?We often look for transformation in the big moments: the breakthrough conversation, the answered prayer, the retreat, the realization that changes everything.But so much of Jesus' ministry happened somewhere far more ordinary.Around tables. On roads. In homes. During interruptions. Over meals.And after His resurrection, we find Jesus on a beach...making breakfast.In this episode of Hope Through the Hard, Ashley and Levi explore what happens when healing stops being something we constantly work on and slowly becomes the way we live.Together, they discuss:• Why Christ's presence isn't limited to extraordinary spiritual moments • What John 21 teaches us about Jesus meeting us in ordinary life • Why abiding in Christ—not sheer willpower—is what produces lasting fruit • The relationship between healing, sanctification, and the fruit of the Spirit • How experience-dependent neuroplasticity helps us understand our capacity to learn new patterns • What Colossians 3 looks like in traffic, marriage, parenting, boundaries, and conflict • Why still being triggered doesn't necessarily mean you aren't healing • How repairing more quickly can itself be evidence of growth • Why we can miss our own healing when we're still measuring ourselves by perfection • How an ordinary, faithful life can become a testimony to the transforming work of ChristMaybe healing doesn't always look like never struggling again.Maybe sometimes it looks like noticing sooner.Pausing.Repairing.Returning to Christ.Responding with a little more patience, gentleness, courage, or self-control than you once could.Don't only look for the breakthrough.Look for the fruit.Because one day, you may look back and realize that everything changed through a thousand ordinary moments that didn't seem important at the time.A pause. An apology. A boundary. A prayer. A meal. A conversation. A walk.One faithful response at a time.Ordinary moments lived with an extraordinary Christ.🌿 Learn more about Curated Coalition or schedule a free coaching consultation at curatedcoalition.com.If this conversation encouraged you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who may need a little hope through the hard.

  4. Aug 19

    Why Rest Feels So Uncomfortable

    Why Rest Feels So UncomfortableLearning to Receive the Rest Christ Freely Gives Why does rest sometimes feel harder than work? Why do we finally get a quiet moment...only to reach for our phone, start another project, or think of everything we should be doing? In this episode of Hope Through the Hard, Ashley and Levi explore why many of us struggle to receive the very rest Christ freely offers. Through Scripture, psychology, and their own personal experiences, they unpack how survival mode can make peace feel unfamiliar—and how the Gospel invites us to something entirely different. Together they discuss: • Why rest often feels uncomfortable after living in survival mode• The difference between striving for Christ and receiving from Christ• What the story of Mary and Martha teaches about anxiety, presence, and receiving• How prolonged stress shapes our nervous system—and why calm can initially feel unfamiliar• What Polyvagal Theory teaches about safety and regulation• How neuroscience supports the biblical invitation to renew our minds• Why we cannot live from peace, grace, rest, or love until we've first learned to receive them from Christ• Practical ways to build rhythms of receiving into ordinary life Throughout this conversation, we draw from Scripture alongside the work of Dr. Stephen Porges and Dr. Kelly McGonigal—not to replace God's Word, but to better understand the remarkable way God designed our minds and bodies to respond to His invitation to rest. Our prayer is that this episode reminds you that the Christian life isn't built by striving to become someone Christ will love. It's built by receiving what Christ freely gives and allowing it to transform the way we live. 🌿 Learn more about coaching or schedule your free consultation at https://curatedcoalition.com If today's conversation encouraged you, we'd be honored if you subscribed, left a review, and shared this episode with someone who needs hope through the hard

  5. Aug 12

    Ep. 53 Living From Rest Instead of Survival

    What Healing Looks Like in an Anxious World What if healing isn't something you spend the rest of your life chasing? What if one day you simply look up and realize you're living differently? After spending an entire season exploring trauma, identity, boundaries, forgiveness, hope, and healing, Ashley and Levi begin a brand-new movement of Hope Through the Hard by asking a different question: How does healing actually change everyday life? In this episode, they explore the shift from surviving life to living from a place of rest—not because life suddenly becomes easier, but because Christ changes the place we live from. Together they discuss: • Why healing eventually becomes ordinary instead of consuming all of your attention • The subtle rhythms that reveal we're still living in survival mode • How Jesus invites us to release responsibilities that were never ours to carry • Why the image of Christ holding the stars changes the way we approach an ordinary Tuesday • What research teaches about stress, meaning, and the way our mindset shapes our experience • How Scripture has always pointed us toward renewed minds, ordinary faithfulness, and abiding in Christ • Why God works through our humanity—not around it • How everyday moments like making dinner, folding laundry, walking outside, and gathering around the table become places of discipleship Throughout this conversation, we draw from Scripture alongside the work of Dr. Kelly McGonigal and the research of Dr. Alia Crum, Dr. Peter Salovey, and Shawn Achor—not to replace God's Word, but to deepen our appreciation for the remarkable way God designed us to experience His peace in the midst of ordinary life. Our prayer is that this episode reminds you that Christ never asked you to hold your world together. He simply invites you to remain with the One who already is. Because healing doesn't always change the circumstances around us. Sometimes Christ changes the place we're living from. 🌿 Learn more about coaching or schedule a free consultation at https://curatedcoalition.com If today's conversation encouraged you, we'd be honored if you subscribed, left a review, and shared this episode with someone who needs hope through the hard.

  6. Aug 5

    Ep 52 When Healing Feels Exhausting

    How God Parents Us While We Parent Them What if the greatest gift you give your children isn't perfection... but showing them what it looks like to keep returning to Jesus? Many parents carry a quiet fear: "Am I passing my wounds on to my children?" In this final episode of our Hope, Resilience & Long-Term Healing series, Ashley and Levi explore one of the most hope-filled truths in parenting: children do not need perfect parents—they need parents who know how to repair. Drawing from Scripture, attachment research, and their own parenting journey, they discuss how God continually parents us while we parent our children. Together, they explore: • Why healing parents often fear repeating unhealthy family patterns • What the Still Face Experiment teaches about rupture, repair, and secure attachment • Why reconciliation—not perfection—is one of the healthiest rhythms in a home • How children learn more from what they watch than from what they hear • The difference between authority that protects itself and authority that restores relationships • How abiding in Christ shapes the way we parent • Why psychology supports what Scripture has always taught about warmth, truth, grace, and healthy boundaries • How self-awareness can interrupt unhealthy generational patterns and build a legacy of hope • Why God is still parenting us while we parent our children Throughout this conversation, we draw from Scripture alongside the work of Dr. Ed Tronick, Albert Bandura, Dr. Diana Baumrind, Dr. Daniel Siegel, and Mary Hartzell—not to replace God's Word, but to better appreciate the remarkable ways He designed us for relationship, growth, and restoration. Our prayer is that this episode frees you from the impossible burden of becoming a perfect parent and instead invites you to become a parent who faithfully returns to Jesus again and again. Because reconciliation has always been at the heart of the Gospel. And every time you return to Christ, you quietly teach the next generation where healing begins. 🌿 Learn more about coaching or schedule a free consultation at https://curatedcoalition.com If this series has encouraged you, we would be honored if you subscribed, left a review, and shared Hope Through the Hard with someone who could use a reminder that Christ walks with us through every step of healing.

  7. Jul 22

    Ep. 50 Hope Is a Practice, Not a Personality

    Choosing Hope When Life Still Feels Hard What does hope look like when life is still hard—and you are too tired to manufacture a positive attitude? Many of us have learned to think of hope as a feeling, an optimistic personality, or the belief that everything will eventually work out the way we want. But biblical hope is something much steadier. Hope does not deny suffering. It does not suppress grief or force us to smile through pain. Hope is the repeated practice of trusting the unchanging character of Christ when our circumstances tempt us to believe otherwise. In this episode of Hope Through the Hard, Ashley and Levi return to the passage that has become the heartbeat of the podcast: 2 Corinthians 4:8–9. Paul acknowledges the pressure, confusion, persecution, and pain of human life—but he refuses to allow any of them to have the final word. Together, they explore: Why hope is a practice rather than a personality trait The difference between biblical hope and natural optimism Why hope begins with the character of God rather than our ability to stay positive Dr. C. R. Snyder’s research on pathways, agency, and taking the next step Dr. Barbara Fredrickson’s research on how hope broadens perspective and builds resilience Why psychology can help us appreciate God’s design without replacing Scripture How remembering God’s past faithfulness strengthens hope in the present What hope looks like before it grows, while we practice it, and as it becomes more deeply rooted Why one faithful step is enough for today Hope is not certainty about how every story will end. It is becoming less certain about outcomes—and more certain about Jesus. The pressure may be real, but Christ is more real. The grief may be real, but Christ remains faithful. The waiting may be long, but we are not abandoned. 🌿 Learn more about Curated Coalition’s coaching services or schedule a free consultation at curatedcoalition.com Subscribe to Hope Through the Hard and share this episode with someone who needs the reminder that hardship never gets the final word. Christ does.

  8. Jul 15

    Ep 49 When Forgiveness Feels Impossible

    Why Forgiveness Doesn't Mean Forgetting, Restoring Full Access, or Pretending You Weren't Hurt What if forgiveness isn't what you've always been told it is? Many Christians have unknowingly been taught that forgiveness means forgetting what happened, pretending everything is okay, restoring broken trust immediately, or removing healthy boundaries. But what if those ideas aren't what Scripture teaches at all? In this episode of Hope Through the Hard, Ashley and Levi explore one of the most misunderstood topics in the Christian life through both a biblical and trauma-informed lens. Together, they discuss: • Why forgiveness often feels impossible after deep hurt • What The Body Keeps the Score teaches about how trauma is stored in the body—and how that supports, rather than replaces, the biblical understanding of our humanity • The difference between forgiveness, trust, access, reconciliation, and healing • Why "forgive and forget" isn't actually a biblical command • How healthy boundaries can coexist with genuine forgiveness • Why your body's protective responses don't necessarily mean you've failed spiritually • How church hurt, identity, boundaries, and the nervous system all converge in the process of forgiveness • Why Jesus patiently teaches both our hearts and our bodies that we are safe with Him Throughout this conversation, we draw from Scripture alongside the work of Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, Dr. Stephen Porges, Dr. Frederic Luskin, Drs. Henry Cloud and John Townsend, and Lysa TerKeurst to explore how God designed the whole person—body, mind, heart, and spirit—to experience healing through Christ. Our prayer is that this episode gives you permission to stop striving for a version of forgiveness God never asked of you and instead begin walking toward the freedom He lovingly invites you into. Because forgiveness isn't where your humanity gets in God's way. It's one of the places where Christ most tenderly meets it. 🌿 Learn more about coaching or schedule a free consultation at https://curatedcoalition.com If this conversation encouraged you, please consider subscribing, leaving a review, and sharing this episode with someone who may need hope through the hard.

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About

This is Hope Through the Hard — where we talk honestly about life’s struggles and how to face them in healthy, hope-filled ways. Because as 2 Corinthians says, we may be hard pressed… but we are never crushed.

Information

  • Creator
    leviaherrin
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    60
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © leviaherrin
  • Show Website
    Hope through the Hard